TNTP has announced its annual list of teachers slathered in awesome sauce. I noticed MTR coach Brett Pangburn, a star English teacher at Excel Academy, and MTR alum Ben Simon, a math teacher at Brownsville Collegiate, as a semi-finalist and honor roller, respectively. Eeez niiice. Congrats to all involved.

Launched in 2012, the $25,000 Fishman Prize for Superlative Classroom Practice is an annual award for exceptionally effective teachers working in high-poverty public schools. No more than five teachers are awarded the prize each year. The prize is named for Shira Fishman, a TNTP-trained math teacher currently teaching at McKinley Technology High School in Washington, DC.

In addition to receiving $25,000 each, Fishman Prize winners participate in an intensive summer residency during which they reflect on their classroom practice, explore the larger issues that shape their profession, and write a short paper on the elements of effective teaching. The residency allows the winners to share their expertise with educators across the country without taking time away from the classrooms where they do their best work.

It's May. You survive June, then collapse in a heap, then do some readings in mid-July to get ideas for the coming school year. Remember, TNTP has a bunch of writings on teacher talent. They're here.

I've been involved with Match Education for about 12 years — for seven years as a board member and as CEO since 2011. Before joining Match, I started and ran the Newark Charter School Fund and taught education stuff at Harvard Business School (odd but true). Way back, I was a dot-com entrepreneur. My first job in education, at 23, was as an assistant principal in a catholic school in Harlem.

We do four things here. We run a public K12 charter school in Boston (Match Charter School). We run a graduate school of education that prepares rookie teachers for work in high-need schools (Sposato GSE). We run an alternative college and jobs program for low-income students (Match Beyond). And we share our ideas and practices with the world (Match Export).

Assorted personal facts: I moved to New Jersey from Denmark when I was nine (the Danish part explains my weird name). Upon arrival, I learned English by watching television. I have three brothers. My wife and I have three daughters. The first thing on my mind when I wake up every day is espresso - I really like it. I also watch a lot of soccer on tv. I think it's the greatest sport in the world and a force for world peace.